Big Idea:
We will identify all the details and events of the story by asking and answering questions then write about one of the story events.

Today I am using this fun story to engage my students in a conversation about the different story events. I will ask them which event they would like to be in. I would like them to write about the event of their choice as if they were there. This is a fun story because it has the student involvement piece. They are repeating the words and actions. We perform the actions fast at the end and it is really fun. It is fun to see my students laughing and giggling as they perform their part of the story. We will repeat it several times. They well come to love it. This would also be a good story to sequence or write an opinion about whether they were afraid or not and why. I am going to begin my lesson by singing the bear went over the mountain song, they love that song and it will be a good segue way to today's story.

My students are seated on the carpet ready for whole group reading block.

"Good morning, I think it would be fun to sing the song, The bear went over the mountain. We just read the poem and write a new ending to it yesterday. We can sing along to this video."

I like to use videos in my lessons. They add variety and keep the students interested in the lesson. Videos can be played other times when there is a few minutes between content instruction. Repetition of the song re-enforces the vocabulary and helps with comprehension. It is also a break in the students constantly listening to me talk.

"The song was about a bear going over a mountain. The bear was looking for something and didn't see anything. I want to read a story to you about a family that went looking for a bear. It is called; We're going on a Bear Hunt."

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This story is so much fun. I will have the students repeat the story lines as we read the book. I love it when the students have part in the reading of the book. They get so excited and watch me closely for their cue when to say their part. This repetition is good for my ELL students learning vocabulary and sentence grammar. They need lots of opportunities to speak the English language in non threatening activities like this.

"In this story I read a part and you echo me. That means you say what I just said. I will point to me when it is my turn and I will point to you when it is your turn. We will also have to make the sounds and hand motions as we go on our bear hunt. Do you think you will be scared? We will be looking for a bear. Let's Go!"

I read the story and point to myself when it is my turn and I point to them when it is their turn to echo me. I teach them the movements and sounds as we go on the hunt. We will have to stand up for this.

Grass - swishy, swashy - rub palms of your hands together

River - splash, splosh - pretend to splash through the water

Mud - squelch, squash - stomp your feet

Forest - stumble, fall - trip and walk

Snow storm - oooh, woooh - rub arms as if cold

Cave - tiptoe, tiptoe - tiptoe

"Oh, no, it's a bear!"

Going back home is told faster than going on the hunt.

Cave

Snow storm

Forest

Mud

River

Grass

Slam the door - clap hands together

Hide under the covers - cover your head with your arms

" I will never go on a bear hunt again!!! That was so fun. Did you get scared? I did."

This type of story reading is a great way for my ELL students to learn English vocabulary. The repetition of the story line with their peers and using hand motions helps with comprehension and elicits excitement for reading. My underlying goal with every story I read is to instill in my students the love of reading. This book is fun and will excite my students to write about an event from the story.

This is the part of the lesson that we will discuss the story details and confirm their understanding of the story. I will open the book to each page and we will ask the 5 W's about the story events. I am teaching my students to identify story details by using the 5 W's. This is time consuming but they find it fun to answer the 5 questions about each event. It is like a 5 W hunt. Being able to identify the 5 W's of a story is important for the future grades where they will have to go into difficult texts to find the answers. Today we are using a fun text with easy answers to the 5 W's.

"Let's go back and look at each story event and talk about the 5 W's"

I turn to each story event and pull name sticks and have the students identify the 5 W's.

grassy event

river event

mud event

forest event

snow storm event

cave event

running home event

"Wow, I thought I was going to trick you by asking you the 5 W's of every picture. You are all too smart for me to trick!! Great Job."

Students are expected write; We're going on a bear hunt. We __________. I will let them choose the story event that they liked the best to write about.

"We have just identified the 5 W's of each story event. I want you to think of the event you thought was the funnest to do on the bear hunt. You will then write about that event. Let me show you the two sentences you need to write."

I model writing the first sentence and the second sentence frame.

"Everyone will write the first sentence. What is the first sentence? We're going on a bear hunt. That's right. Now you get to choose the funny part and write: We ________. You could write, We ran through the grass. We went to the cave. We ran home. We ran through the mud. I will come around and help you with your choice. If you can phonetically write your words, that would be great."

I walk around and help students sound out their words. Some students need help deciding which event to write about. I collect the finished writing papers. Those that finish early can read books quietly on the carpet.

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This is the part of the lesson where I find out if I really did teach to the CCSS. The wrap up of my lessons is a formative assessment as to which students understood the story details and can write their sentences independently. Their oral presentations are also an assessment to whether they can sound out their written words to read or if they are still struggling with this skill.

When all my students are finished we clean up the books and sit back on the carpet for the student oral presentation. I call one row up at a time to stand before the class and let them reading independently . I have learned that my ELL students feel more confident in their reading when they are standing up with peers. We applaud and cheer after each reading.

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Resources

I love to show a video of the book or a reading to help reenforce the vocabulary, story comprehension and the love of listening to a story. I show videos at the end of the day when chairs are stacked, backpacks are on we are waiting for dismissal. Here is Going on a Bear Hunt video.